Billy Wade

B. R. Wade, Jr., though new to fiction writing, has been all too happy to add it to his list of life accomplishments. Born in Roanoke, Virginia, he spent his teen years and much of his adult life in the Tampa Bay area of Florida. While in Tampa, Bill worked in retail management before switching to a career as a computer systems analyst for the local school system. He changed careers again after nearly 20 years of working with mainframe computers and started a manufacturing company. After this last change, he made his self-proclaimed escape to the mountains of West Virginia shortly after the turn of the century.

After enlisting in the U.S. Navy Reserve in 1969, he was called to active duty and graduated top of his class from both basic training at Naval Training Center (NTC) Orlando, Florida and Yeoman ‘A’ School at NTC Bainbridge, Maryland. Soon after, he was assigned to the Naval Investigative Service Office in Norfolk, Virginia for nearly two years.

Bill left active service as a Petty Officer Third Class, then spent three more years as a weekend reservist at his local Navy Reserve Center assisting with the clerical demands of the center and a Seabee unit. And despite his busy work schedule, Bill obtained degrees in Business Management and Computer Science. He also took his business training a step further and studied marketing at the University of South Florida.

Happily, all of Bill’s business, educational and military pursuits have proved quite inspiring and provide him with plenty of writing material. He is nearly finished with the next adventure for his Fair Winds NIS novel protagonist, Marcus Colt. Bill also attributes his new love of fiction writing to surviving brain surgery a few years ago. As he phrases it, some of the connections in his brain have found “new and definitely different pathways.”

In addition to writing, Bill owns and operates a hobby kit manufacturing business on his property in rural West Virginia. He also devotes time to fostering rescue animals with special needs from his local volunteer animal shelter.